Airbnb has appointed a former Meta executive as its new chief technology officer, as the short-term rental company invests in bringing more artificial intelligence and personalization features to its service this year.
Article contents:
- Introduction
- The new CTO and background
- Strategic shift toward artificial intelligence
- Beyond traditional search
- Meta’s talent exodus
- Apple veterans in leadership
- FAQs
Introduction
Ahmad Al-Dahle, who recently led generative AI at Meta and the team behind the open-source Llama models, is joining the company on Wednesday and will oversee the engineering and data science teams. Al-Dahle succeeds Ari Balogh, who stepped down in December after seven years at the company.
The new CTO and background
Al-Dahle began his tech career at Apple, spending 16 years working on tasks including iPhone display systems and the company’s self-driving car project. During his six years at Meta, he oversaw generative AI research and products for the social media giant, including the Meta AI chatbot.
Strategic shift toward artificial intelligence
CEO Brian Chesky said the company is in the midst of a “technological revolution.” Chesky plans to launch in-app AI search in 2026 to help deliver better travel recommendations and mimic the interactive side of working with a human travel agent. He explained: “What that means is moving away from an anonymous customer just searching, and making sure that everybody’s search, everybody’s conversation is unique to them.”
Beyond traditional search
Chesky added: “It won’t look like old search, and it won’t look like a chatbot. It’s going to have to marry the best of both worlds.” Interaction will rely less on text, featuring more visual components to help users retrieve their preferred options more easily. AI recommendations will also use information from guidebooks already created by company hosts for guests to ensure “more realistic” content.
Meta’s talent exodus
Al-Dahle is the latest AI leader to exit Meta following an overhaul of the company’s teams last year. Mark Zuckerberg restructured the group following disappointing results from the Llama 4 model, a pivot that marginalized some of Meta’s current AI leaders. Yann LeCun, one of the “godfathers of AI,” also departed in December, signaling a shifting strategy.
Apple veterans in leadership
Al-Dahle joins other Apple veterans in Airbnb’s senior management. Hiroki Asai, chief experiential officer, leads marketing and design after two decades at Apple. Tara Bunch, global head of operations, leads the program after eight years leading AppleCare. This collection of expertise reflects Airbnb’s focus on design and user experience.
FAQs
Q: Who is Airbnb’s new CTO?
A: It is Ahmad Al-Dahle, former leader of Meta’s generative AI team and Llama models.
What is Airbnb’s AI plan?
It plans to launch a new search system in 2026 that acts as a personal travel agent, understanding user preferences and context.
Why are leaders leaving Meta?
Due to internal restructuring and shifting strategies toward commercial products rather than long-term research.
